The Ship of Damned Dreams
by Flyleaf-AllAroundMe13
Summary: Sequel to Meeting the Half Vampire. The hunt for Leonard is on. With no leads, and no help, the search for Steve has become frustrating in every possible way. And with Laney as a half-vampaneze, nothing has gotten easier. That is until that golden envelope appears. The hunters expect it to be a riddle from Mr. Tiny. They are surprised to find that it's an invitation.
1. Prologue

_**Laney POV**_

Well…I'd like to say that things have gotten better – but I'd be completely bullshitting you. Shortly after Mr. Tiny appeared at the Cirque, Darren, Mr. Crepsley, Vancha, Harkat, and I began to come up with a plan to catch Steve. The good thing was that I could help them because I wasn't a vampire. The downside:

I was a half-vampaneze. And let me tell you, being one is a huge pain in the ass. It was bad enough that I was one of those killers, but the drinking urges were terrible. Darren would try to comfort me when we all stopped for a rest in a cave, a clump of trees, or some abandoned building, but that barely helped.

Mr. Crepsley would give me a half a bottle of human blood to drink once a week. I would gulp it down like it was the only taste I'd ever get – I'd become an animal. I would always drink in private so they wouldn't have to see me for what I really was.

A fucking monster.

I was cranky enough as it was because of the thirst, but it didn't help that we hadn't found a trace of Steve anywhere. I mean, what the hell were we supposed to go off of? Painted footprints that led us straight to him? A map that marked exactly where he was? No.

Sure, that pissed me off, but again, the half-vampaneze thing was a bigger issue for me. Finding Steve was – and _is _– my number one priority, but the urge to kill when I fed just prevented me from focusing completely on our mission. So that's when Vancha suggested that I be blooded a half-vampire.

Darren argued against it, saying it could kill me. I argued as well, but not for the same reason. If I was blooded a half-vampire, I wouldn't be able to travel with the four anymore. Only non-vampires could help them along their journey. But that's when the loophole hit me.

I would only be a _half_-vampire. Not a full one. When I expressed this thinking to the rest of the group, Mr. Crepsley flashed an honest-to-God _grin._ Harkat had let out a breathy laugh, and Vancha had clapped Darren on the shoulder, and had said, "You chose a smart one." Further into that discussion, Mr. Crepsley had said that technically, Darren didn't even count as one of the hunters…_yet._

And that maybe _that _was the reason why we hadn't found any leads since beginning our journey two and a half months ago – because the trio of hunters hadn't been formed yet. So that's when the decisions were made:

Darren would be blooded to be a full-vampire, and I would be blooded to be a half-vampire.

Now, Darren being blooded as a full-vampire wouldn't be a problem at all, since he was already half. But for me, making the transition from half-vampaneze to half-vampire would be risky. Extremely risky – but I was willing.

I was willing to do whatever it took to help out the people that I cared about.


	2. Invitation

**_A/N Hello! I just wanted to give a little warning before I really start to write this thing - my "writing skills" are "rusty." (Btw, if you understand that reference, I love you.) But don't worry, once I get back into writing this story, my writing should go back to how it used to be; not very brilliant, but can be tolerated. Lol, I hope whoever is reading this enjoys anyway._**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own the Cirque Du Freak series nor Darren Shan's characters. I only own Laney.\_**

**_Laney's POV_**

The decision was made last night – I am to be blooded a half-vampire. Granted, I'm nervous as hell, but I'm not going to let it show. This change is absolutely necessary. Even now, it is hard to be nervous about the blooding because of my craving for human blood. It's a gnawing in the back of my mind that I can't wait to be rid of – that is if I live through this. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Darren was blooded a full vampire last night. The process went smoothly, just as planned. He told me tonight that he still didn't feel much different.

"Are you ready?" Darren asks me as he cuts his fingertips. I nod, determined to not be afraid.

"Yes." I do the same to my fingertips, and place my hands in front of me to meet Darren's. Before we make contact, Darren says something.

"What are the odds of this working?" He asks Vancha.

"You are a freshly blooded full-vampire – it gives you a higher success rate."

"But…?" I ask, knowing he wanted to add something else.

"There is still a chance that this can kill you." Mr. Crepsley says from beside Darren. Darren's brown eyes show worry.

"Let's find out." I say, and my bleeding fingertips connect with Darren's.

I feel an odd rushing sensation in my right arm, flowing towards me. While in my left arm, I feel the sensation flowing outwards. Darren's vampire blood entering and my vampaneze blood leaving. Everything is going okay until a pressure begins to build in my chest. I'm able to handle it at first, but then the pressure becomes a sharp pain, a stab in my heart. I don't pull away though – Mr. Crepsley says to hang on for just a little while longer.

The edges of my vision are becoming hazy, and I can hear my quickening heartbeat loud in my ears. I'm seeing red, and after a second more, I fall to the ground. I'm assuming I fell forward, because Darren catches me. I clutch my head, trying to stop the pounding, but to no avail. Every part of my body is on fire – like it's fighting something.

The monster blood in my veins is trying to fight off the new vampire cells. I don't know how long this will last. I bite my tongue and close my eyes to keep from yelling. I vaguely notice that Darren is saying my name as he's holding me.

"Laney, it's going to be okay. You're gonna be fine. It's gonna be over soon." He's trying hard to hide the panic in his voice. It isn't very hard to detect, even in my painful state.

"She's going to be okay, right? This is how it's supposed to happen?" He asks the two elder vampires.

"I've seen worse when this has been attempted – she will be weak, but alive." Mr. Crepsley replies.

The burning and stinging has stopped coursing through me, and everything is quiet again. I'm still not on my feet, and I have a slight headache, but otherwise fine. I open my eyes and smile weakly.

"Hey, guys." I say, sitting up slowly.

"Woah, woah, take it easy." Darren helps me sit upright.

"How do you feel?" Vancha asks.

"I'm not craving human blood as strongly. I mean, it's there but…it doesn't feel the same."

"Anything hurt?" Darren asks.

"Just my head – I'll live." I shrug as I rub my eyes, exhaustion creeping up on me. I ignore it. The sun had barely set an hour ago – we had plenty of walking to do tonight. "Okay, well this has been a terrible experience that I never wish to have again, so…let's get a move on."

Darren grins and helps me up. "Where's Harkat? I thought he'd be back by now." I ask as we exit the cave we'd taken refuge in. Harkat had gone hunting, not wanting to see the painful process I had endured. But fox and deer were plentiful in this area – nothing should've given him enough difficulty to take longer than half an hour.

The three vampires aren't given a chance to answer because Harkat appears from behind a clump of trees and bushes. "There you are. What took so long?" Darren asks him. That's when I notice the envelope in the Little Person's hand. He holds it up for the four of us to see.

"What is it?" Mr. Crepsley asks.

Harkat pulls down his mask to speak. "Mr. Tiny…appeared and…asked me…to give this…to you."

Darren reaches down and takes the envelope as Harkat puts his mask back into place. Darren flips it over to read the front first. In the bright moonlight, I can see the fancy, dark blue letters. They spell – _Hunters. _The envelope is opened, and the paper inside is written in the same fancy handwriting, only in black ink. It reads:

"_At last, you've figured it out! Master Shan, congratulations on being upgraded to a full-vampire. Miss Laney, congratulations on being blooded a half-vampire. I knew you were a smart one, I was betting on it!_

_Now that the four of you have finally met the requirements for this hunt, the hunt may begin. Below you will find directions to a specific location."_

Darren and I read over the directions, and find the name and address of our next destination.

"_You must be there in three days, by midnight, no exceptions. If you aren't there, then your hunt for Leonard will become nearly impossible, and I will not help you again. Do not be late. Remember, no other vampires may help you on this journey, only non-vampires may assist you. Happy hunting!"_

_-Mr. Desmond Tiny_

"What does the letter say?" Mr. Crepsley asks.

"It's not a letter," Darren says, still staring at the name of our new destination. I look up from the paper and turn my gaze to the two elder vampires.

"It's an invitation."


End file.
